IRDAI Constitutes AI Working Group to Regulate Artificial Intelligence in Insurance Sector

Key Facts

• The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) constituted a seven-member working group on Artificial Intelligence for the insurance sector on 18 June 2026.
• The working group is chaired by Prof. Sandeep K. Shukla, Director of the International Institute of Information Technology, Hyderabad (IIIT Hyderabad).
• Deepak Gaikwad, General Manager and Chief Information Security Officer (CISO) of IRDAI, serves as the member-convener.
• Members include senior officials and experts from CERT-In (Indian Computer Emergency Response Team under Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology), Reserve Bank Information Technology Private Limited (ReBIT), SBI Life Insurance, Star Health & Allied Insurance, and ICICI Lombard General Insurance.
• The working group’s mandate is to prepare governance frameworks, best practices, safeguards, and an AI audit framework for AI use cases in insurance.
• Focus areas include ethical use, transparency and explainability of AI, data protection, impact assessment on insurers and policyholders, usage in claims processing and fraud prevention.
• The group will review global regulatory and supervisory approaches to AI in insurance to understand best practices and risk management strategies.
• The group is expected to submit its recommendations to IRDAI within three months of its constitution.
• IRDAI had issued revised guidelines on information and cybersecurity for regulated entities in April 2026 addressing evolving threats including AI-driven cyber risks.
• IRDAI was established under the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority Act, 1999.

Background & Context

The insurance sector in India is seeing an increasing adoption of Artificial Intelligence technologies for various use cases including underwriting, claims processing, fraud detection, and customer services. Recognizing the transformative potential of AI as well as the associated ethical, operational, and cybersecurity risks, IRDAI formed this working group to create a balanced regulatory approach ensuring innovation while protecting policyholder interests and data privacy. The group’s work will help insurers adopt AI responsibly and build resilience against AI-related risks.

Why This Matters for Exams / Exam Relevance

This development is significant in understanding the evolving landscape of insurance regulation in India, especially with respect to emerging technologies. Exam questions may focus on the role and functions of IRDAI, the impact of AI in insurance, regulatory frameworks for AI governance in financial sectors, and recent initiatives for technology oversight within public regulatory bodies. Awareness of this event and its details reflects current regulatory priorities and technological trends in the insurance domain.

Points to Remember

• IRDAI formed a seven-member AI working group on 18 June 2026.
• Chairman: Prof. Sandeep K. Shukla (IIIT Hyderabad).
• Member-convener: Deepak Gaikwad (General Manager & CISO, IRDAI).
• Members include experts from CERT-In, ReBIT, SBI Life, Star Health, ICICI Lombard.
• Mandate includes governance framework, ethical AI adoption, transparency, data protection, AI audit framework, claims and fraud processing AI applications.
• Three-month timeline for recommendations.
• Related regulatory context: IRDAI’s cybersecurity guidelines from April 2026; establishment under IRDA Act, 1999.
• Global regulatory practices will be reviewed to inform Indian regulations.